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The flags will be flying at half mast in Dollywood today, as Carl Dean, Dolly Parton‘s husband of six decades, died on Mar. 3 2025 at the age of 82. Dean and Parton had one of the most romantic love stories in music, staying devoted to one another for almost 60 years despite leading very different professional lives.
The two met the day Parton moved to Nashville to begin her music career at the age of 18. Their meet-cute took place outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat, with Parton impressed that Dean’s eyes were on her face while talking to her (guys, take note). As she later said: “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me). He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Heartbreaking news! Dolly Parton’s husband, Carl Dean, has passed away. 🙏 My heart goes out to Ms. Dolly pic.twitter.com/WrRcBMRU7K
— Auntie Smartassy (@AuntSassyAss) March 4, 2025
The two immediately fell head-over-heels with each other and married in May 1966 and – in a rare instance for celebrity marriages – “Until death us do part” actually applied. Parton’s iconic song “Jolene” was even inspired by a bank teller flirting with Dean:
“She got this terrible crush on my husband. And he just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention. It was kinda like a running joke between us – when I was saying: ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money.’ So it’s really an innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.”
But while Dean and Parton may have been romantically inseparable, their professional lives couldn’t have been more different. While Parton was doing the whole being a beloved megastar idol thing, Dean spent his time running a Nashville asphalt-paving business, which presumably literally kept the couple’s feet on the ground.
Parton confirmed Dean’s death in a post on social media, saying: “Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
— Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) March 4, 2025
The cause of death
Parton and Dean were focused on keeping their private lives just that, to the point that in 1984 she joked that “he’s just somebody I made up to keep other people off me.” As such, they’ve requested privacy, and no official cause of death has been confirmed.
That said, in May 2024, it was reported that Parton was taking a step back from her music career to care for Dean, who was said to be suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease. As per a source close to the family, Parton wanted to “make sure they enjoy every last minute they have together.” Those suffering from Alzheimer’s often die as a result of complications associated with the disease, with aspiration pneumonia the leading cause.
That said, we don’t know the exact details of Dean’s death, and without an official confirmation, we can’t say anything for certain. All we can do is send our condolences to the Parton family and specifically Dolly herself.